Born Sick in the USA: Improving The Health of a Nation
Economic Update with Richard D. Wolff
Release Date: 04/21/2026
The Challenge for Socialism
Economic Update with Richard D. Wolff
This week on Economic Update, Professor Wolff discusses how the recent upsurge in socialist politicians and interest in socialism raises the question: why did socialism fade after its last surge in the 1930s Great Depression? The New Deal was a kind of socialism that prevailed then and delivered government programs (Social Security, Minimum Wage, Unemployment Insurance, federal jobs programs), but after 1945, the Cold War presided over the New Deal's undoing. The lesson: something must be done about corporate profits, the pool of money untouched by 1930s socialism that corporations used to buy...
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From Strike to Worker Co-Op
Economic Update with Richard D. Wolff
This week on Economic Update, Professor Wolff explains why the wars in Ukraine and Iran are driving higher interest rates in the U.S., affecting the diesel oil crisis, American inflation, and even the price of a Big Mac. The second half of the show features an interview with photojournalist Steve Mellon on converting Pittsburgh Post-Gazette into the worker co-op, Pittsburgh Progress. Economic Update with Richard D. Wolff is a production of Democracy at Work, Inc., and any reproduction in whole or part is strictly prohibited without written permission. We make it a point to keep the...
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On The Edge of Sports
Economic Update with Richard D. Wolff
In this week’s episode of Economic Update, Professor Wolff delivers updates on Trump's effort to buy votes for Republicans and its consequences, World Wars 1 and 2 as culminations of capitalist colonialism, the U.S. as the inheritor of prior colonialisms to become the world's first global imperialist police force securing the wealth flow to the U.S. that is now in decline. The second half of today’s show features an interview with Dave Zirin, author of the new book The People's Historian: The Outsized Life of Howard Zinn. Economic Update with Richard D. Wolff is a...
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Millennials Speak
Economic Update with Richard D. Wolff
In this week’s episode of Economic Update, Professor Wolff delivers updates on the September 6th German elections and their meanings, the importance of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization, and the undemocratic internal organizations of major capitalist corporations. The second half of today’s show features an interview with stand-up comedian, activist, and media commentator Francesca Fiorentini. Economic Update with Richard D. Wolff is a production of Democracy at Work, Inc., and any reproduction in whole or part is strictly prohibited without written permission. We make it a point to...
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Revolutionary Socialism in the US Today
Economic Update with Richard D. Wolff
In this week’s episode of Economic Update, Professor Wolff delivers updates on Die Linke ("The Left") political party surging in Germany, the errors and omissions in Bessent's anti-Iran sanctions program, and the background of the historic victory of unionized public workers (bus drivers) in Jackson, Mississippi, with the help of Jackson's political leaders. The second half of today’s show features an interview with Kshama Sawant, revolutionary socialist, and 3-time election winner of a seat on Seattle City Council. Economic Update with Richard D. Wolff is a production of Democracy at...
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Activism in the U.S. Now
Economic Update with Richard D. Wolff
In this episode, Professor Wolff delivers updates on new research documenting market failure to meet the urgent, large need for childcare in the US, the selective morality of Ambassador Huckabee, the empty threats by corporations and the rich to leave jurisdictions that dare to tax them, and the significance of the debt passing milestone of $40 trillion. The second half of today’s show features an interview with long-time activist and organizer, David Cobb, on the resurgence and importance of activism in the U.S. today We want to thank our devoted community of supporters who help make this...
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Economic Hardship Reporting Project
Economic Update with Richard D. Wolff
This week on Economic Update, Professor Wolff delivers updates on the Starbucks Workers United call-to-boycott, the powerful lyrics of Dolly Parton's song "9 to 5," and the recent electoral victories by socialists and progressives, especially N'Kiyla Jasmine Thomas in Oklahoma. The second half of the show features an interview with Alissa Quart, co-author with Barbara Ehrenreich and founder of the Economic Hardship Reporting Project. We want to thank our devoted community of supporters who help make this show and the others we produce possible each week. We kindly ask you to also support...
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Socialism: An Evolving Tradition
Economic Update with Richard D. Wolff
Today's entire program is devoted to tracing the origins and evolution of socialism through its splits and growth to become a global movement shadowing capitalism. Particular attention is paid to the specialist focus on capturing the state and the split between electoral/evolutionary approaches to that capture, as well as revolutionary approaches. A guiding theme is the relevance of socialism's rich history to its resurgence via the DSA in the US today. We hope you enjoy this discussion and look forward to joining you next week for another all-new episode of Economic Update. Economic Update...
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Economics of the U.S. State
Economic Update with Richard D. Wolff
Today's entire program approaches the economic role of the state in U.S. society, past and present. We analyze two major tensions: one between minimizing the state (liberalism/libertarianism) and maximizing it (New Deal/Trumpism), and the other between a state that serves the employer class and one that serves the working class. We end with a glance at where the current rise of the DSA fits into that second tension. We hope you enjoy this discussion and look forward to joining you next week for another all-new episode of Economic Update. Economic Update with Richard D. Wolff is a production of...
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The Resurgence of White Supremacy
Economic Update with Richard D. Wolff
This week on Economic Update, Professor Wolff delivers updates on U.S. businesses receiving refunds for Trump's illegal tariffs without lowering prices raised to cover them, a 24% decline in foreign students coming to the U.S., and an emerging labor shortage in the U.S. economy. The second half of the show features an interview with Prof. Lucas Wilson, Mt Holyoke College, on the resurgence of white supremacy in the US today. We hope you enjoy this discussion and look forward to joining you next week for another all-new episode of Economic Update. Economic Update with Richard D. Wolff is a...
info_outlineOn this week’s episode of Economic Update, Professor Wolff provides updates on the 3 major teachers’ unions struggling with the LA Unified School District, rising electricity costs in the U.S., and corrupt utility commissions, and on the extreme redistribution of wealth from the lower 99% to the richest 1% in the U.S. from 1990 to 2025. The second half of today’s show features an interview with public health professor Stephen Bezruchka on the economic and political roots of widespread sickness in the U.S., as analyzed in his new book, “Born Sick in the USA: Improving the Health of a Nation”.
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